AAI may partner Gujarat government for Dholera Airport Project

With a total footprint of over 920 sq km, Dholera is the biggest of the eight industrial smart cities being developed in the first phase of the $100 billion DMIC project.

The Airport Authority of India (AAI) is likely to partner with the government of Gujarat to build the Rs 2,000 crore Dholera airport project. Equity participation between AAI and government of Gujarat will be 51% and 49%, respectively. “Process of taking all necessary approvals is in fast track and is likely to be completed in next few months,” Jai Prakash Shivahare, managing director, Dholera Industrial City Development said.

The airport at the biggest upcoming greenfield city in India under the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC) project at Dholera will be built over four years. “The Airport Authority of India has agreed to be an equity partner to build an airport here and we hope work to begin in this calendar year. A proposal to this effect has already been moved to the Civil Aviation ministry,” he said.

ET independently checked with AAI officials, who confirmed that DICDL has proposed a 51:49 partnership for the airport, which is now under consideration.

However, the official added that the proposal has not yet been accepted by AAI, yet. The earlier proposal was of 74:26 JV, which AAI had not accepted.

The Dholera Industrial City Development (DICDL) is the special purpose vehicle (SPV) formed by the DMIC Trust and the government of Gujarat to administer the special investment region (SIR). It is seeking investments from defence and aerospace, heavy engineering, auto and auto ancillaries, manufacturing, pharma and biotechnology and MSMEs, among other sectors, thereby, proposing employment for 8.27 lakh people during the course.

With a total footprint of over 920 sq km, Dholera is the biggest of the eight industrial smart cities being developed in the first phase of the $100 billion DMIC project. The 22.5 sq km of activation zone entailing an investment of Rs 4,400 crore will be infrastructurally ready by September 2019 and is up for grabs for investment, he said.

“With six town planning schemes in place, this is the first mega project of its kind wherein existing land owners will not be disturbed as the project gets underway,” he explained. There are 22 villages with about 30,000 people under the SIR. “Rather than acquiring land from private owners, government has earmarked the entire region. We will market only 280 sq km of government land that belongs to us. Private owners can decide what to do with their land parcels eventually,” he said. The entire project span is 30 years and would cost Rs 30,000 crore.

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